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What Is This Study About?

The study takes place at the Alan Edwards Pain Management Unit, at the Montreal General Hospital.

We are looking for a correlation (a link) between low back pain and the bacteria (germs) which inhabit our gut.

To do that, we will analyse stool and saliva samples, taken from individuals with and without back pain, and look for specific bacterial compositions.

Who May Join The Study?
  • Women and men over 18 years old, with low back pain who participate in the Quebec Low Back Pain Study.

  • Healthy adult women and men who live in the same house with an individual with chronic low back pain.

Unfortunately we cannot recruit participants with the following conditions:

  1. Any chronic gastrointestinal disease (including inflammatory bowel diseases, diverticulosis, celiac disease, irritable bowel syndrome);

  2. Chronic pain conditions other than low back pain; 

  3. Active malignancy;

  4. Pregnancy;

  5. Treatment with antibiotics in the month preceding recruitment.

What Will The Study Include?

To participate in this study you do not need to leave home.

The study will include giving one stool sample and one saliva sample, and filling-in a short questionnaire.

Samples will be given at home, using easy-to-use kits which will be mailed to you.

The full kits will then be returned to us by mail.

You will also be asked to fill a short on-line questionnaire (on your computer or smart-phone).

For sending in the samples and filling in the questionnaire, you will receive $50.

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